World War II Timeline

Japanese Invasion of China

Jul 7, 1937

In the 1930s China's government support was very unstable. It was a divided country. Chiang Kai-Shek had formed a Nationalist Government. In 1931, Japan was eager to gain access to the vast natural resources to be found in China. They saw China's weakness so they invaded Manchukuo. In 1937, Japanese and Chinese troops were skirmishing and led to the Marco Polo Bridge Incident where full blown fighting broke out. This led to the second Sino-Japanese War. The Chinese sided with the Japanese.

German Invasion of Poland

Sep 1, 1939

Aldolf Hitler, the German Fuher, sought to regain lost territory by invading Poland. This began World War Two. His strategies he used in Poland would become his Blitzkrieg strategy. He bombed cities to destroy the enemy's air capacity, railroads, and means of communication. By doing this, he overtook Poland.

German Blitzkrieg

Sep 11, 1939

Blitzkrieg is the German term for "lightning war". This was a war tactic created by Aldolf Hitler to create disorganization among the enemy forces. They achieved this through the use of mobile forces and firepower. IT preserved human lives and limited the expenditure on artilery.

Fall of Paris

Jun 14, 1940

On the 14th of June, 1940, at 8:00 AM, the people of Paris awoke to the sounds of the Germans invading their city. Winston Churchill urged Paris to try and hold on to their government because America would come to their aid. However, America did not come to aid them because they did not want to get involved in Hitler's conflict.

Operation Barbarossa

Jun 22, 1941

Hitler created Operation Barbarossa in an attempt to invade the Soviet Union. This event was a crutial on in World War Two. The operation was the largest ever staged. Three and a half million axis soldiers participated. They attacked using the Blitzkrieg strategy. Hitler's goal from the beginning had been achieved in a quick victory.

Pearl Harbor

Dec 7, 1941

On December 7, 1941 the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the US Naval Base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, using bombers, torpedo bombers and midget submarines. On December 8, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered a speech, also known as the “Infamy Speech” to the American citizens, informing them that this happened while the US was in the midst of talks to keep peace. That same day, America entered into World War II.

Wannsee Conference

Jan 20, 1942

15 high-ranking Nazi Party and German government officials came togeter at a villa to discuss the solution to what they called the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question." They wanted complete annilation of European Jews. The conference was convience to inform and secure support for the plan and to inform the men that Hitler himself supported it.

Battle of Stalingrad

Jul 17, 1943

This battle was the successful soviet defense of the city of Stalingrad, Russia. Russians consider it their greatest battle of the Great Patriotic War. It stopped the invasion of the Germans and shifted the favor towards the Allied Powers.

Operation Gomorrah

Jul 24, 1943

The British troops raid Hamburg Germany by night and America drops bombs during the day calling it "blitz week". This operation is when things begin to turn around for Britain. The bombings proved devistating for Germany.

D-Day [Invasion of Normandy]

Jun 6, 1944

D Day, otherwise knwon as the Battle of Normandy, won liberation of France from Germany. On the first day of battle, 156,000 American and British troops landed on the beaches of Normandy and invaded in one of the largest amphibian military assault in history.

Operation Thunderclap

Feb 15, 1945

Operation Thunderclap was code for a huge operation that had planned to stage a massive attack on Berlin, Germany. It was estimated that there would be many casualties and a lot of devistation. It was later decided that it would not work.

Battle of Iwo Gima

Mar 26, 1945

This battle came from the need to have an American base in Japan. Three United States Marine Divisions bombarded the island if Iwo Jima and won it over despite the 23,000 Japanese troops defending it.

VE Day

May 8, 1945

VE day stands for Victory in Europe day. This is the date that the Germans finally surrendered to America and Great Britain. The rejoiced with banners and flags and celebration everywhere.

Battle of Okinawa

Jun 22, 1945

This was the bloodiest battle of the Pacific War. It involved 187,000 troops of the United States Army against 130,000 of the Japanese Thirty Second Army. The bases that were at stake were vital in order for a U.S. win of the war. Both armies suffered a lot of loss.

Dropping of Atomic Bomb

Aug 6, 1945

On August 6th, 1945, Harry S. Truman ordered for the Atomic Bombs be dropped on the city of Hiroshima. This was the first atom bomb ever dropped. The effects were very detrimental. About 80,000 people were killed from direct blast and another 60,000 died from exposure to radioactive material.

VJ Day

Sep 2, 1945

On this day, it was announced that Japan had surrendered to the Allied powers. This officially ended World War Two. It is known as Victory over Japan day.

Battle of the Buldge

Dec 16, 1945

In December of 1945, Hitler decided to conduct a blitzkrieg attack on northwest Europe through the Ardennes to Antwerp. Little did he know, the Americans were expectiing him and they fought back! To keep the Germans from coming, the American troops formed a buldge and made thier numbers seem bigger. They were successful in keeping the Germans held back,